Friday, November 16, 2012

Hey, What's the Big idea?

It
might be one idea that launches the story but several come into play before I’m
through – or even old scenarios get dusted off, rearranged, and used in this newer context.I’ve written here on Criminal Minds
previously how an article in my hometown paper the L.A. Times about a planned subdivision had hit hard times during
the ’08 economic meltdown inspired, if that’s the right word, my latest novel Warlord
of Willow Ridge.As my
colleagues have noted this week, you start with a “what if” for a character or
situation and build out from that.Yet
it’s also the case that nuggets and full blown outlines and characters I’ve
previously worked out for something else can be mined.

As
an example, for some time I’ve been intrigued about the notion of an avuncular
liquor salesman who was also a killer.Maybe he was some sort of hitman for hire or he was an assassin for a
super secret government agency.This
idea sprang from back when my dad had a friend who was a freewheeling liquor
salesman.He dated smart, good-looking
women, drove swanky leased cars, got to travel servicing his accounts, do special
events and what have you.A black Don
Draper if you will.

Spring
forward some years and at one point I was determined to create a comic book
series or at least a graphic novel using my liquor salesman as the main
character.I wrote a couple of different
outlines of who this guy was and why he went around bumping off people.In one of the scenarios, he wasn’t a killer
per se but a bona fide spirits rep who Kolchak-like –
a reporter character of TV, prose and comic books who invariably gets tangled
up in horror cases – due to his job encounter werewolves, serial killers, aliens
and the like.But none of my proposed
pitches really go to how I saw this character.

Then
came New Pulp.

As
I recently noted on the other site I blog for, Thalia Press Authors Co-Op in a
piece entitled Pulped
Fictions, and by others, particularly the hard working Keith Rawson on LitReactor,
e-books, them internets and print on demand have helped to usher in an ascendant
neo pulp sub-genre.Long story short, I’ve recently been working
on what will be a series of e-book novellas in this mold.One of the ideas is in the tradition of 1970s
paperback vigilantes like the godfather of them all, The Executioner (who spawned
The Punisher in Marvel Comics), The Nullifier, The Baroness, et al.

But
as I sat down to work out the particulars of my modern-day vigilante, I knew my
liquor salesman wasn’t the main guy…but he could be the uncle of this guy.That when something drastic happens to our
hero to transform him, to send him after the bad guys, ol’ unk steps forward to
help and Shazam! our guy and us learn he’s more than just a smooth talking
booze pusher.Now if I can just come up
with a cool moniker for my guy.

Hopefully
another idea will bubble up when I think on it or one of those massive
cover-all vinyl ads plastered on a bus passes by and something clicks.Though I’m pretty sure I won’t be calling
this dude The Hugo Boss Man.I mean,
that does have a ring to it, but not exactly the badassness I’m looking to
convey.

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